ACES Educational Center for the Arts

ACES Educational Center for the Arts, or ECA, is an American public arts magnet high school located at 55 Audubon Street in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. The school is primarily located in the former Congregation Mishkan Israel synagogue with studio spaces across the street. The school has two theaters—the Arts Hall in the main building, and the Little Theatre at 1 Lincoln Street—and multiple gallery spaces throughout the main building.The school enrols approximately 260 students and is divided into five departments: Music, Dance, Theater, Creative Writing, and Visual Arts. Students take academic courses at their "sending schools" (public high schools) during the morning and attend classes within their departments during the afternoon from 1:00 to 4:00, Monday through Thursday.Students may apply to up to three individual departments at a time and must prepare a portfolio, audition piece, or interview depending on the department to which they are applying. Accepted students may enroll at the beginning of any year of high school.ECA is based on the idea of artists teaching artists, employing working artists to teach high school students their art form of choice.Notable alumni Kim Nalley Chris DeRosa Lauren Ambrose Wayne Escoffery Heidi Alice Voight Jon Brion